Topic Tuesday // "You don't have to be isolated as a carer" // Tues 26th October, 7pm-8:30pm AEDT

[BPDSurvivor]

@SA64 , on social media platforms etc, did you find people in like circumstances were able to provide glimmers of hope that perhaps medical staff were reluctant to give? For example, I work with a child with cerebral palsy. All medical teams said he'd never talk. Yet reaching out gave the parents hope so they tried many treatments - today, he CAN talk... only too well!

[outlander]

Hi everyone
Will read through and catch up

[SA64]

@BPDSurvivor Yes, you find out a lot from people who have been through what you're going through.  They may have some really good resources, take away that feeling of isolation too.  However, you need to be careful around some of the information they give you, as some is really unhelpful and a bit out there.  But look, when it's 3am and you're staying up to  make sure the person  you are caring for is ok, it's nice to know there is probably someone else online you can just say hi to.

[Shaz51]

@Daisydreamer , @SA64 , @Former-Member 

My partner can not cope with centrelink at all so we are staying clear away from the place 

@BPDSurvivor , my mum does not and will not have any support programs that might be available to her xx

[Daisydreamer]

Welcome @outlander! 🙂 Great to see you here

[Daisydreamer]

Question 5: What additional challenges have you experienced as a carer during the pandemic?

[BPDSurvivor]

Good point @SA64  to be careful about the credibility of the information on social media platforms. Also a good point that sometimes, even a 3am Hello helps!

That's what I love about SANE forums.. no matter the time, there's someone in the same situation 🙂

[Krishna]

Hi @Shaz51   My girl still estranged from me. I realised recently that we haven't had a conversation since Christmas 2019. Other people are her Carers now yet I'm still involved from a distance. It's hard. xx 🙏❤️

[SA64]

@Daisydreamer  

These past few years have been difficult for me as a carer to two now adults, who live away from home.  My son in a Perth suburb and my daughter in Christchurch where she is attending uni.  With regional closures, it meant not seeing my son for some time, and additional financial stress when he was unable to access his job, and as a casual worker not eligible for Centrelink payments.  He also lost his rental due to lack of funds for rent.  So his mental health took a beathing, and created stress as I couldn’t see him and when he gets unwell his contracts and he wouldn’t answer texts, messages or phone calls.

I was supposed to visit my daughter last year, and we kept moving the date and now are just waiting it out.  She has had some difficulties with her physical health, having hospital stays and a broken arm and then about 6 months later, tendon and ligament damage to the same arm.  We stayed in touch via messages and video chats, but when she was really down physically, she also went down mentally, and that was very stressful for us.  We both understood why we couldn’t travel, but that did not negate the sorrow and stress of not being able to see each other.  

I certainly did reach out for help with this, because guilt tends to creep in, even though I know mentally there is nothing more we can do, emotionally I felt I’d let her down.

[BPDSurvivor]

That must have been so difficult @SA64 . 

Conversely, due to the lockdowns, did you find telehealth services more available to you in rural areas during the pandemic?